Friendships That Last Forever
by 0553140
Summary: Daisuke Fujiwara finds a mysterious bracelet that transports him to a dimension in which everything and everyone is strange to him. And the bigger question that will remain untold for now... Will he ever be able to find a way home?
1. Chapter 1

**Friendships that Last Forever **

**Disclaimer: I do not own ''Naruto or ''Ginga Nagareboshi Gin''.**

**Chapter 1: The Beginning of Trouble**

Three whole months had passed since the death of the old hunter of the small village in Ohu, Gohei Takeda. The old owner of the deceased Bear-hound, Riki.

Like many hundred other dogs, Riki had perished on the day of the last battle between Akakabuto and his bear minions.

And the Great Leader had died in the very paws of the monstrous sized bear that had killed many humans in the small village during the years.

The thick red markings in the monstrous bear's fur had given the animal the name so many humans had feared.

Daisuke Fujiwara, a local from the said small village, was just returning from a successful hunting trip in the mountains.

A few large, plump rabbits swung back and forth from a rope he had thrown over his left shoulder and his hunting bow was strapped over his other shoulder. The quiver of arrows was strapped to his belt.

'' Good job, Fuji!'' he spoke happily to the female Akita-inu walking along by his side, and was answered by a grateful bark.

Fuji, a light orange furred dog had been the loving mate of the heroic Riki and a mother of three pups; two of which had been given to new owners, and the third, a silver furred Akita named Gin had become the hero in the village after defeating the feared Akakabuto.

Gin, was now the leader of a pack of wild dogs receding in the mountain named Double-Pass (Futago-Pass).

The young human and the dog were both enjoying the touch of the sun shining down upon them from the sky, and the faint warm breeze swirling around them as they made their way towards the bridge running over a fast running river.

It was the same bridge that Daisuke and Gin would have taken on their first hunting expedition if it hadn't been washed away by the fast moving flood water coming down from the mountains.

They had just crossed the said bridge, when a glint of metal near a tree caught the teenager's attention.

Interested, Daisuke walked closer and saw that it was a metal bracelet shaped like a dragon with its wings outstretched. There was also a round golden ball held in the dragons's talons. And on the ball there was writing that seemed incomplete; like it was missing the last crucial part of it.

Fuji whined uneasily as the boy knelt down on one knee and lowered the rabbits on the ground next to him before picking up the object. She felt a sense of wariness towards the bracelet as it was emitting a strange static force.

She gasped in worry as the teenager put the object on top of his right wrist.

'' TAKE IT OFF, DAISUKE!'' she barked, despite knowing that the boy wouldn't be able to understand what she was saying.

She hurried over and was going to tug the bracelet away from the boy, but Daisuke only chuckled and pushed her back gently.

'' Fuji, what's gotten into you?'' he said in an amused voice.'' Its only a bracel….''

**Chhack! Clink!**

The female Akita uttered a startled whine as the bracelet suddenly clamped tightly closed around the boy's wrist.

'' What in Kami's name?!'' Daisuke gasped out in shock as he saw the object now tightly clamped around his right wrist.

He proceeded to try and pull it off, but the hinges that strapped the damn thing to him wouldn't budge an inch.

'' What's up with this damn bracelet?'' he growled out in frustration.'' It won't come o…. **Aaarrrgghhh!''**

His exclamation of pain was due to the bracelet suddenly attaching itself deep in his skin.

Small spikes had buried their way inside his skin and and were now releasing shocking waves of pure heat inside him.

Crying out as the burning sensation trickling into him became more intense by the minute, Daisuke tried to rip the thing off him but only succeeded in making himself bleed.

Fuji stood there, rooted to the spot with an expression of horror on her face as she watched the blood dripping down the boy's wrist and onto the ground as he tried to pull the bracelet off him.

And if that wasn't everything, a blue light then began to appear over the human's body. Beginning from the tips of his feet.

Noticing this, Daisuke shouted:'' Fuji, run away from here!''

He sounded quite terrified, and who could blame him. The fierce pain lanced through his legs where the light was creeping upwards fast.

'' Daisuke!'' Fuji barked out, terrified as well as she stayed rooted to the same spot, staring at the blue light seeking to engulf the human's entire body.

''FUJI, RUN AWAY! NOW! '' the human cried out as the light almost reached his shoulders.

Fuji blinked back a small tear appearing in her eyes as she took off running just before the light swallowed Daisuke's whole body and lifted him high in the air.

But the orange furred Akita stopped after running ten meters from the site and turned her head around to watch in horror as the young human writhed in pain. His eyes were closed tightly and his mouth open in a silent yell of pain. Sweat was rolling down his forehead.

The strange light seemed to flash around her young master for several long moments, but in truth it took only about two minutes. The bracelet on Daisuke's wrist had turned bright red and Fuji could smell the acrid stench of burned flesh.

A final loud crackle sounded through the air and the light that had kept the human suspended in the sky disappeared into nothingness, along with the teenager himself.

'' Daisuke!'' Fuji breathed out, slumping to the ground. She stared at the spot where her master had disappeared in great despair.

How could she return to the village without the boy and endure the useless searching that would come once Daisuke's parents realized that he was missing.

The only place she would be able to lead them to was this place where the ground and trees were scorched by the energy emitting from the thrice cursed bracelet, but nothing else as the said boy had disappeared entirely with the light.

Tears appeared in the female Akita's eyes as she rested her head on top her front legs.

Then, a series of howls suddenly echoed from the woods, as well as the sound of running feet that thundered along the ground.

Fuji immediately stood up as she recognized the voice and scent of one of the approaching dogs.

Her son, Gin!

And soon she saw him running in her direction, leading a small pack of dogs.

Her son had grown up, and his eyes had gotten a more mature look to it.

And he looked so much like his father, except for the three scars on his forehead and his silver colored fur.

'' Kaasan (mother)!'' he exclaimed in shock as he saw her standing there on the other side of the bridge; he had wanted to find out about the strange blue light that had flashed up in the sky, but hadn't expected to meet up with his mother.'' What are you doing up here in the mountains?''

Fuji swallowed back the lump that had appeared in her throat and began to speak; her voice was strong, if not a little shaky as she recalled what had happened.

Her son and the other six dogs, whom had gathered around her, listened silently as she told them that she had gone hunting with the young human boy, Daisuke.

She mentioned what had occurred on the successful hunting expedition, and heard a few of the dogs laugh good naturally as she mentioned the few fails which involved Daisuke tripping over a rock or a loose log that alerted the prey to their presence.

And naturally, the long swear words that had come out of the boy's mouth when he realized what he had done, had been amusing to the dogs listening to her story.

But when she told them of the metal bracelet Daisuke had picked up from the ground, the mood amongst the group immediately tensed up.

And when she mentioned the barbs that had attached themselves deep inside the flesh on the human's wrist, an audible gasp rippled amongst the group.

'' I felt the heat on my face as the blue light surrounded him,'' Fuji said softly,'' so when he cried out I knew that he was in real agony. And when he tried so hard to pry that... that wretched thing off his wrist, it caused a lot of blood to spill out. The spilled blood is still there on the ground.''

She gestured to where the trees were scorched, and then turned to look at her son whom had been strangely silent the whole time.

There was an almost startling expression of disbelief and horror on Gin's face as he stared down at the ground.

He didn't even seem to register that John, his German shepherd friend had moved away from his side and was approaching the spot which his mother had indicated to be the place where Daisuke had disappeared.

Sniffing around for a moment the older dog quickly came upon the familiar scent of the boy and the puddle of blood spilled on the ground.

This made the usually stoic German Shepherd close his eyes for a moment to gather his composure. He wondered silently who would be able to make such a harmful and disgusting object? And for what purpose?

Eventually John turned around to address the silently waiting group of dogs, but his words were directed to Gin.

'' It is Daisuke's scent, Gin.'' he said quietly.'' And there is a puddle of blood on the ground like your mother said!''

These words snapped the young Akita-dog from his frozen state. He practically ran to the place where his friend was standing and leaned over to quickly sniff the scorched ground in front of him.  
His form slumped in despair as he recognized his former owner's familiar scent amongst the smell of smoke.

'' Daisuke…'' he breathed out so quietly that only his friend John heard him. Tears were pricking at his eyes.'' Just where did you end up in, and could our previous meeting have been the last?

**...**

'' Oy, kid! Wake up!'' a deep, gruff voice exclaimed to the teenager lying in the middle of his wooden deck in an awkward position on his stomach.

Daisuke uttered a pained groan as he felt someone shaking him on the shoulder, and slowly forced his head to turn. The person he saw in front of him was an old man with short graying hair, a moustage, a beard and round glasses.

'' Who… are you, and… where am I?'' he asked, his voice hoarse and weak even to his own ears.

The man that had spoken to him lowered a hand on his shoulder for comfort.

'' You are in Wave Country, and my name is Tazuna. I build bridges that go across oceans and lakes.'' the man quickly answered him.'' And what is your name, kid?''

'' My name... is Daisuke. But I've never heard of a place called Wave Country.'' Daisuke exclaimed weakly, then winced as the bright sunlight shined into his eyes.'' ITAI (ouch)!''

His teeth gritted as the sun shining into his eyes flung fire to the already terrible headache pounding at his skull. His stomach quickly reacted to the pounding with nausea that quickly made him throw up whatever he had eaten that morning. He gagged, trying to force back the second feeling of nausea as the smell of his own vomit wafted up his nose.

The teenager gasped for breath for a few minutes, his eyes shut tightly against the sunlight. But he half opened his eyes as he felt the old man, Tazuna, remove his quiver of arrows from his belt and the hunting bow strapped to his other shoulder. The man then gently turned him on his back and lifted him up to carry him somewhere; hopefully the old man's house and not somewhere else.

Daisuke was only half aware of what was going on around him as he was carried, but he heard the steady clomping that came from walking on wooden decks and he smelt the scent of ocean saltiness. There was also the steady sound of waves crashing onto the shoreline.  
Apparently this was the reason why the place was called the Wave Country.

But it didn't matter much to him at the moment; he hurt so much that he really didn't care where he was as long as the people were friendly.

His eyelids began to close on him, but he was jolted to wakefulness by the sound of a door being opened and closed. He looked up tiredly and saw Tazuna being approached by a woman with long, glossy black hair.

She looked to be in her thirties and could have been the old man's daughter, for all he knew, but he was unable to keep himself awake any longer.

Daisuke fell into an unconscious state, no longer aware of the old man and the young woman whom where trying to keep him awake.

**End of Chapter 1**


	2. Chapter 2

**Friendships That Last Forever**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Masashi Kishimoto's'' Naruto'' or Yoshihiro Takahashi's''Ginga Nagareboshi Gin''**

**Chapter 2 Pain and Revealizations**

It was early the next morning, when a certain teenaged boy decided to finally push himself to wakefulness…

Daisuke Fujiwara uttered a groan as he pried open his heavy eyelids. His whole body still ached from his head right to the tip of his toes and the ache was worsened whenever he moved around under the blankets.

But the worst pain came from his right arm which, he noticed, had been wrapped up in bandages while he had been unconscious.

'' **Oww!**'' the black haired teenager moaned out as he moved his left arm behind him and used the position as a leverage to struggle up into a sitting position on the futon.

He grimaced and raised his unwounded hand to rub at his aching temples. It was the mother of all headaches that he'd ever had in his short life, and it wasn't pleasant.

'' So it wasn't a dream after all.'' he murmured out loud as he carefully looked around the very sparsely furnished bedroom.'' I'm really in a place called the Land of Waves and receding in a house owned by the bridge builder named Tazuna. But how, in Kami's name, will I get home?''

His brain quickly registered what he would loose if he remained stuck here in this dimension. His home and village. His friends, like Shinji and his mentor, the doctor of the village who's name was Hidetoshi.

And his parents!

The two people that had raised and loved him.  
Would he ever see any of them again, or would his fate be to be stuck in this new dimension for the rest of his life?

Tears pricked at Daisuke's eyes but he quickly wiped them away. There was no use crying since it wouldn't do him any good.

'' Oh Kami, I wish I had never even seen that bracelet,'' Daisuke thought, clenching the fingers of his left hand, ''or been as stupid as I was to touch the damn thing.''

''_Speaking of the bracelet_'', the boy thought as he looked around the small room for a moment before spotting the elusive object in a small wooden box next to his hunting bow and quiver of arrows.

He reached out with his left hand and pulled the hunting bow to him. He then inspected it with a critical eye and noticed that despite all the buffeting around in the spinning center of the vortex of light, there were no severed or half broken strings to worry about. And the wooden parts of it seemed to be in prime condition as well.

Daisuke breathed out a sigh of relief; it truly put his mind at ease that it was so undamaged for he held great value towards the weapon for its power and accuracy.

And he had, after all, traded his rather expensive snowmobile to get his hands on this bow in order to help out his friend and companion get revenge for the supposed death of the dog's father, Riki, in the claws of Akakabuto.

'_'Gin._'' Daisuke thought sadly, putting the bow aside and turning to stare out the small window situated on the opposite wall of the room.

The silver furred Akita-hound was another friend whom he would miss if he were to be stuck in this dimension.

'' I now know that dogs are more smart then some ignorant people may think they are, '' he thought,'' '' after all, Fuji sensed something I didn't and tried to protect me, and I just laughed off her uncharacteristic behavior…''

Daisuke laughed out loud to himself with bitterness in his voice.'' I wonder if you met up with your mother in the mountains after the glowing light transported me away, Gin? And Fuji, were you there to tell your son what happened?'' he thought to himself.

His hands clenched as his gaze fell upon the object of his predicament. He truly wanted to throw it across the room or right in the depths of the ocean, but held the urge.

Instead, he reached for it and lifted it up to eye level. He quickly located the obvious blackened drops of his own blood on the metal surface.

**Clack!**

Daisuke looked up as he heard the door to the room open.

The person that stepped in was the young woman the teenager had seen before unconsciousness had taken him; she was carrying a food tray laden with a bowl of miso-soup, and plate ladden with a fried fish and vegetables.

''Ah, so you are finally awake, Daisuke.'' she spoke with a kind smile that brought a small one to the teenager's lips.'' Do you feel well enough to eat something?''

'' I think so.'' the boy murmured as he glanced at the food on the tray.'' Let me try out the soup for now.''

The woman handed him the soup bowl, and he carefully took a small sip from it. His stomach made no flip-flops from it, and so the teenager dared to take a bigger sip from the bowl.

This time, though, his stomach made a reaction to it.

It forced Daisuke to pause with an uncomfortable expression on his face as he waited for the feeling of nausea to pass.

When it finally did, Daisuke took another very small sip of the soup.

He was aware of the woman watching him, but he shrugged off the glances of others as he slowly but steadily finished the whole bowl of miso-soup.

'' This was very good,'' he spoke to her with a small smile,'' but I don't think my stomach is quite ready to take in something other than soup. But thank you, lady… umm?''

'' My name is Tsunami. I'm the daughter of Tazuna. He was the one whom brought you here.'' she answered, smiling as she took the bowl and set it on the tray. '' I'll just save these for later, then.''

She gestured to the rest of the food.

Daisuke nodded thoughtfully before asking: '' Umm.. Tsunami-san, about the dragon bracelet; was it difficult to get off my wrist?''

This question was one of the big ones that had been bugging him since he awoke.

Tsunami shook his head as she set aside the food tray and pulled a small bottle and a cloth from one of her pockets.'' The bracelet opened very easily, '' she answered, '' but there were metal spikes buried inside your skin and I had to be very careful when I pulled it off.''

'' Well, I remember the sensation of my skin being penetrated.'' Daisuke commented, nodding his head thoughtfully.

'' Speaking of you're wrist, ''Tsunami continued, gesturing to the white bandages,'' I need to change the dressing.''

Daisuke compliantly allowed her to remove the pin that held the bandaging together, and to unwind the white cloth from his wrist.

He grimaced as he finally got a good look at his injuries; the skin looked like it had been badly sunburnt and there were a few long scars running down the left side of it. Obviously he had tugged quite hard on the bracelet for it to have left such marks.

But what truly stunned him was the very clear tattoo of a dragon with its wings outstretched.

'' I don't think this will ever fade from your skin, Daisuke,'' Tsunami said as she soaked the clean cloth with liquid substance that would ward off infection,'' for its been burned deep into your skin.''

Daisuke inhaled sharply but held back any other notion of him feeling pain as she dabbed his wrist with the cloth. But it really felt like his skin was being burnt again.

'' I actually kind of like it.'' Daisuke commented as soon as Tsunami finished with cleaning the wounds. He gave a small laugh.'' But my parents would probably be horrified of it when they see it… well, that is if I will ever see them again.'' he finished with less enthusiasm.

Tsunami looked up and saw the expression of suppressed tears in the boy's eyes.

She knew what the boy needed, as he had seen the very familiar expression on his son's face for months now.

Setting aside the cloth, she moved to sit next to Daisuke and wrapped her arms around his shoulders.

For a moment his body felt taught against her's, like he couldn't quite grasp why she was doing what she was doing. But soon he relaxed and took in the needed comfort.

'' I want to see my parents again.'' he suddenly admitted; his voice sounded choked.'' I don't want to be estranged from them forever.''

Then he buried his face in her shoulder and allowed himself to cry long enough to be able to let go of the emotional ache prickling at his heart.

…...

Meanwhile, in the Akita prefecture, a search party had been scheduled to look for the teenaged boy whom hadn't returned home after going on a hunting expedition with the family's dog.

The mood in the company was just as bleak as the sky above them. Rain clouds were darkening the sky and the drizzling rain was slowly soaking the men as they trudged forward behind the female Akita that was leading them.

Down the path they went, and crossed the bridge that went over the fast moving waters of the river.

Then the dog suddenly stopped in her tracks and gave a bark to the men following her.

'' Fuji, you sure … that this is where Daisuke's footprints end?'' Kousaku, the boy's father, asked hesitantly as he stepped forward to stand next to Fuji.

His voice held fear and despair as he looked down upon the scorched ground and trees, and the the burned carcasses of the two dead rabbits still lying abandoned on the ground.

Fuji whined sorrowfully as she turned and licked the large, bearded man's hand as he stood over her.  
She had walked the search party through the whole route she and Daisuke had taken on their hunting expedition and this was where the boy had last been seen.

Daisuke's father slumped to his knees on the damp ground after having been confirmed that this was the last place where his son had been standing. The fingers of his left hand were gripping the surface of the blackened bark of a nearby tree tightly as he stared out into the woods.

No one of the search party spoke as they watched the man grieve for his son. They had all taken off their hats in silent respect for the teenager from their village.

Eventually it was the doctor and Daisuke's mentor, Hidetoshi, whom was the first to voice out his thoughts to the grieving father.

'' I'm truly sorry that such an unfortunate event happened to your family, Kousaku…'' he spoke up, but was interrupted by the said older man.

'' You should be, Hidetoshi!'' the older man spoke vehemently as he stood up on his feet so suddenly that it startled the other members of the hunting party.

A frown appeared on the doctor's face.

'' You were the one to plant the thought of a hunting bow being a powerful and worthy weapon to learn how to use, in my son's head!'' Daisuke's father shouted at the doctor; his hands were balled into fists.'' You were the man responsible for him learning how to use it and then the brat decided in a fit of insanity to head to the mountains with Gin to take on a Bear! Jiisama told me this bit of information!''

Hidetoshi stood there silently as he listened to the angry ranting of a desperate father.

And the older man was right. It was due to him that the somewhat brash boy had discovered the fine art of shooting with a bow.

'' And then you decided that it would be good idea to further teach him how to become a successful hunter after the death of Akakabuto!'' Kousaku continued to shout out.'' AND NOW he has disappeared after going on a hunting expedition by himself!''

'' I understand that you are grieving for the loss of your son ,'' Hidetoshi finally spoke up, a deep frown on his face,'' and I can't deny being responsible for teaching Daisuke how to become a hunter. But it wasn't me whom gave him permission to go off hunting for rabbits on his own. This had been your decision, Kousaku!''

**WHAM**

There was a startled gasp that resounded amongst the whole searching party as Daisuke's father had suddenly taken a few steps forward and rammed his fist in the doctor's face.

Hidetoshi uttered a grunt of pain as he staggered back a few steps due to the strength of the impact ( Kousaku wasn't a skinny man).

But due to the hard training of his body, the doctor hadn't fallen to his knees.

When he turned to face the older man, he too was showing anger as his dark brown eyes glowered at Daisuke's father.

He took the few steps forward, his right hand dangerously clenched into a fist.

**WHAM**

The older man was forced to his knees by the hit to his chin.

Wincing, he raised his head and glowered up at Hidetoshi whom was glaring right back at him.

There would probably have been more punches exchanged between them, if the other members of the search party hadn't broken out of their momentary stupor and decided to step in between the two angered men.

Three of them grabbed hold of Kousaku as the farmer stood up on his feet and the other two moved to stand beside Hidetoshi just in case.

But it seemed like the doctor had gotten over the momentary blind anger he'd been succumed to when he had been punched in the face.

'' I can take a lot, Kousaku, for I've had to deal with a lot of problematic hospital patients in my former hospital in Tokio,'' Hidetoshi spoke in a calm, controlled voice, but his eyes were still narrowed in anger,'' but no sane person likes to be on the receiving end of a punch.''

Kousaku uttered a grunt of disgust, but made no retort to the doctor's words as he brushed past the three members of the searching party standing beside him and strode off down the path towards the village.

Fuji whined softly as she got up from where she had been sitting. She licked the doctors hand a few times as she passed the tall man and was answered by a pat on the head.

She gave a soft bark of farewell and ran off down the path towards his owner.

The other members of the search party watched the dog's progress for a moment before they too decided to head down the path towards the village.

Only Hidetoshi stayed standing where he was, staring in the direction of the scorched trees and ground.

'' Oy, you coming, Hidetoshi?'' Kume asked the doctor whom seemed to have fallen to his own thoughts.

Kume was a friend of Hidetoshi and one of the three men whom had gone off bear hunting with the doctor during the spring when Akakabuto still roamed the forests surrounding the village.

'' You go, Kume, I'm going to stay out here for a while.'' Hidetoshi answered, turning to look at his friend.

'' You sure?'' Kume asked.

'' Hai (yes).'' the doctor answered.

'' As you wish.'' Kume said, shrugging his shoulders. He turned around and started to walk down the path.

Hidetoshi watched him go for a moment before walking over to the bank of the river.

He sat down on one of the big rocks near the edge of the river and took out a handkerchief from the pocket of his coat and leaned forward to dip it into the cold water.

He then lifted it up and held it against his left eye. He winced as the eye gave a twinge of pain at the contact.

'' Oww!'' he grumbled under his breath.'' That punch probably left a bruise.''

A sudden howl sounded through the woods…

Hidetoshi readied his hunting- rifle out of sheer reflex, but when he saw whom were the source of the noise, he set the weapon down on the ground.

'' John?'' he breathed out as he saw his former hunting dog standing on top of a tall outcrop of rocks with Gin standing there beside him.

And there were others of Gin's and John's pack mates out there in the background.

He remembered the warning he had shouted out to Daisuke when the boy had tried to run towards the silver furred Akita after the successful battle against Akakabuto had come to a conclusion; that Gin was no longer the house-pet dog he had once known as a friend and companion, but a wild animal.

And the same thing was very true with John.

'' And yet,'' Hidetoshi thought as he watched the German shepherd and Akita jump from the ledge and approach him slowly, '' maybe the wild dogs don't turn out to be dangerous to the people of our village. ''

The doctor made no sudden movements as the two dogs approached him step by step until they were standing only a hand's length away.

Hidetoshi held out his left hand and tentatively stroked John's muzzle. When the shepherd showed no want to bite him, the man relaxed and and fondled his former pet dog's ears with both hands.

A small smile appeared on his lips at still being able to do this; he had missed being able to do this for a long time now.

John had been his friend and companion for so several years. The shepherd had only been about three months old when he had become part of the doctor's life, and he had taken the puppy almost everywhere he went.

'' I've missed you, John.'' he said truthfully and was answered with a lick to the hand; a very usual show of affection that the dog had shown to him over the years.

But no matter how happy he felt at being able to see and even touch John again, a rush of remorse flooded his heart as he happened to turn his head slightly and glance up at the cliff where the other dogs were moving closer to stand on the outcrop of rocks which the German Shepherd and Akita had abandoned.

When he had loaded his rifle and aimed it at the dogs following the aftermath of Akakabuto's death, it had been an act to draw out John from the huge group of wild dogs. Not to kill off the members of the pack. And like he had predicted, John had shielded his companions from his weapon.

This, more than anything, and the showing of teeth to him had proven that John's loyalty had drifted elsewhere.

He then reached out his other hand to Gin whom fully approached him, giving the doctor a change to stroke it's head.

'' And its good to see you again as well, Gin.'' he spoke to the silver furred Akita.'' Though I wish it were in better circumstances. I wonder if you and your kin saw what happened to Daisuke, and what sort of phenomenum caused it to happen?''

Gin uttered a sad whine and nodded his head. He wanted to somehow give indication that he knew what had happened in this area.

And he seemed to have succeeded, as Hidetoshi looked at the dog with a surprised expression on his face.'' You know too, John?'' he asked the shepherd.

John gave a short bark and a nod at this question.

The doctor gave sad sigh. He knew it was almost impossible to discern from the whines and barks what they wanted to tell you. Even now when they obviously knew what had occurred in this area.

'' This is one of those moments when I wish I could fully understand what you want to tell me. '' Hidetoshi spoke to the two dogs.

He closed his eyes for a moment as he remembered the last conversation he had with his student. Though the boy had been brash and a risk taker, he couldn't deny that Daisuke had showed amazing dedication to learning how to use a hunting-bow.

He was brought back to the present when John licked at his hand again.

Sighing, Hidetoshi patted him a few more times on the head.'' And I wish I could stay here longer, but I have patients to take care of at the hospital.'' he said to the shepherd.

The doctor then reached out his hand towards the gun he had propped against the rocks, but was given a surprise when Gin took the weapon in his mouth.

''Thank you, Gin. '' he said with a smile as he took the rifle from Gin and swung the straps across his left shoulder.

He then used the rocks as a leverage to pull himself up on his feet. '' Take care, the both of you.'' he then called over his shoulder as he began striding down the path which lead down to the village.

John,Gin, Akame, Kurotora, and Smith watched silently as the tall human walked away, his form becoming smaller and smaller as he moved further away down the path…

**End of Chapter 2**


	3. Chapter 3

**Friendships that Last Forever**

**Disclaimer: ****I do not own Masashi Kishimoto's'' Naruto'' or Yoshihiro Takahashi's''Ginga Nagareboshi Gin'****'**

**Chapter 3: ****To Return to a Place He Once Called Home **

...

It was a silent party of wild dogs that trudged back to their cave in the Futago Pass that served as shelter for them all.

They had left the cave yesterday to find out what the bright blue light, that had exploded in the sky, had been about.

But the whole truth of what had happened had been more then they'd believed could be possible.

The sky above them was still dark from the gloomy rainclouds and though the rain had let up some time ago, it was possible that more rain would be falling from the sky later that day.

The other dogs didn't dare to say anything to their leader whom seemed to be deep in thought about something.

Then, Gin stopped walking with a determined expression on his face. '' The more I think about it,'' he said, turning to face the others,'' the more I feel that we should look for a bracelet similar to the one Daisuke found, because that object might be the solution to how I may be able to see him again and maybe bring him home to his village.''

His words had been so unexpected, that for a moment his friends stared at him in flabbergasted silence.

'' Um… Gin,'' Kurotora asked the silver furred Akita,'' have you gone out of your senses?''

Gin glared at the older, black furred Kai-ken dog.'' I'm NOT out of my senses Kurotora!'' he answered in a very unsatisfied tone of voice.

'' You sure, Gin?'' John broke in with an incredulous expression on his face.'' Because what you just said sounded very much like you are loosing your mind!''

Gin looked around at the others, and saw the same sort of incredulous expression on each of their faces. Shaking his head in frustration, the young leader turned to stare intently at John.

'' You know, more than anyone here, how much he means to me.'' Gin spoke, trying to voice his thoughts calmly.'' He was the first friend I'd had before you came along, John.''

John looked at the younger dog in exasperation.'' What, and I mean WHAT makes you think that there is another one of these bracelets in this area or anywhere else, Gin?'' he huffed.

'' Mother said that the dragon on the bracelet was holding a golden ball in its talons, and the ball had writing on it that seemed incomplete.'' Gin answered the German- shepherd.

'' Fuji-san may have said what she said, but there is no guarantee that you would ever find a second bracelet like that!'' John counteracted.'' And even if we did find it, what do you think would be the outcome of it all, Gin?''

The younger dog opened his mouth to retort but John was quicker.'' You would be in the SAME situation as DAISUKE is! You would end up stuck in wherever he ended up! And he may not even be alive anymore; have you thought of that, Gin?''

Gin frowned at his friend.'' I would do anything to help my former master!'' he spoke earnestly.

'' LISTEN to what you are blabbering on about, Gin!'' John spoke with a small growl as he finally lost his patients. He was also showing teeth at his leader.'' WHO would become the leader of Ohu if you end up stranded in whatever place Daisuke ended up? You can't just abandon your followers for one person that's important to you!''

Gin locked eyes with his German Shepherd friend; his eyes showed great sadness as he muled over what John had said to him.

Yes, in his deep devotion to the young human he had forgotten that he had others whom needed him as well.

His father had handed him the leadership of the pack before his death and thus he needed to stay loyal to the companions, whom had travelled all over Japan to gather troops for the battle they'd faught against the monstrous Akakabuto.

And it was true what John had said about Daisuke; that he may not have survived after being zapped into nothingess by the blue light.

Although he hoped that this wasn't the case.

Gin uttered a sad sigh before saying to the others:'' We shall at least send messengers to Hokkaido, Shikoku and Kyuushu. Our friends need to know of this strange phenomenal accident that has happened in our mountain. They need to be aware that there may be another hazardous object like that around.''

John sighed as he turned to exchange glances with Akame whom, like him, was a General of the pack.

'' This we can do, Gin, but don't get your hopes up on us or them finding anything. '' the white Shiba- inu spoke calmly to their leader.

John looked around at the others and heard them voice out their consent for the plan, and yet he had fallen to his own thoughts. He didn't feel very reassured.

'' You have consented to our wishes, and yet I'm a little afraid for your stability if we may indeed happen to find this other bracelet, Gin.'' he thought with a grimace on his face.

Later that very same day…

Fuji was laying on top of the comfortable Tatami mats in the living-room of the Fujiwara residence. It was a place where she usually wasn't allowed to step foot in.

And so she had been quite surprised when Kousaku had gestured for her to come further into the house.

She had thus followed him up the few steps of stairs heading to the main area of the house and had quickly found a warm, comfortable place to rest her weary feet.

Apparently this was a sort of thanks the man wanted to give her for a job that was well executed in a sense that she had found the boy's footprints and where they ended, even if the boy himself hadn't been found.

She uttered a sad sigh. '' A job well done? Yeah right.'' she thought sarcastically, shaking her head in disgust at herself for not being able to help the boy more in his plight.

She watched as the boy's father knelt behind his wife as she worked on cooking pieces of meat over a burner; the man's hands were gently massaging his wife's shoulders.

And the wife in question looked ready to burst into tears, which wasn't very surprising after what she had had to hear from her husband. Yes, this was a scene Fuji had now quite often seen happening since she and Kousaku had returned from the search in the mountains.

But she was very composed now which was a far cry from the breakdown the mother of the family had gone through when her husband had broken the news of their son's death to her.

Even Fuji had been startled by her owner's hysteric reaction to her son's demise, and it had taken a long time for Kousaku to calm her down enough that she would allow him to hold her tightly against his chest. And even then she had cried pittifully into his chest until his shirt was soaked.

But it had obviously not mattered to him much since he had just pulled his wife closer and buried his own face in her hair.

And unless her ears had deceived her, Fuji had overheard the stoic farmer crying softly into his wife's hair.

Sighing again, Fuji lowered her head on top her front legs and closed her eyes; she hadn't gotten much sleep last night due to the harrowing events of yesterday and now the sleepless night was taking its toll on her.

After all, she wasn't so young anymore.

Then, suddenly, a very familiar howl echoed from outside the door of the Fujiwara house.

Fuji stood up quickly and padded to the flap in the front door. She invited her son into the house and he followed her inside, albeit cautiously as if expecting to be an unwelcome guest in the house.

The female Akita smiled at her son reassuringly and nudged Gin further into the house until he was standing on the tatami-mats.

He looked so nervous standing there in the living-room, but the young Akita relaxed when he realized he that he wouldn't be chased out of the house by Daisuke's parents.

The two humans just seemed very surprised that he had come to the village.

Gin layed down on the floor opposite his mother so that the two Akitas were facing each other.

'' So what has been decided that I don't know of?'' Fuj asked his son softly.

'' I have assigned messengers to wherever we have companions in Japan,'' her son answered wearily,'' and our companions in those areas will report back if anything remarkable is found. Though…''

Gin gave a small sigh…'' we may not even find anything even if we search the areas of Ohu and beyond.''

'' Don't loose hope yet, son.'' Fuji said with a sigh.'' Because I'm not despite feeling like I've failed you by not being able to protect Daisuke. And even more, I've failed them…''

She gestured her head at Daisuke's parents whom where silently watching them.

Gin lifted his head and looked over at the two humans.

The fresh marks of grief were noticeable on their faces.

'' I should be upset at Daisuke for not heeding your attempt at warning him about the bracelet.'' Gin muttered as he lowered his head down on his front legs. '' And yet I don't feel any of that.''

'' His curiosity overcame his logic.'' Fuji replied. '' He is still so young. And also, he couldn't sense what I had noticed. There was a strange static force in the bracelet but it was too low for a human to notice; and yet as he touched it the force in it increased dramatically for him to realize something was really wrong. But this was only when the thrice cursed object was already clamped around his wrist.''

'' Who would make such an object?'' Gin wondered sadly.

'' I don't know,Gin.'' Fuji replied, just as sadly.

**Tap,tap,tap!**

Gin and Fuji looked up as they heard footsteps approaching them, and suddenly there were two platefuls of raw cow meat in front of them.

The silver furred Akita uttered a grateful bark at Kousaku and his wife as they sat down on the floor near him and his mother.  
He took a bite of the meat and was surprised to notice that it hadn't been in the things humans call refrigerators.

Apparently Daisuke's mother had been to a store where they sold fresh meat to the customers.

He took another mouthful and chewed on it well; he hadn't eaten much lately and the plate of meat in front of him was now bringing his hunger to the surface. He took his time to enjoy the taste.

When he finished his meal, he licked Daisuke's mother's hand as a thanks, and was answered by her hand gently petting him on the head. Then Kousaku reached out to pet him on the back.

'' This brings back memories.'' Gin thought as he allowed the two humans, whom had been his owners in his puppy-hood, to pet him. '' Only then I was a puppy and we were all much happier. And Daisuke was there as well with his smiling face and laughing as I occasionally licked his face and tickled his cheek with my nose.''

He turned to look at their faces, drawing their features into his memory for future remembrance as he knew he wouldn't be coming back to this place for a long time.

'' Gin!'' his mother suddenly spoke up.

Gin turned to face his mother with a questioning expression on his face.

'' Son, promise me this alright; promise me that you will send word to me as soon as you get word of the object having been found somewhere!'' Fuji spoke to his son with a firm voice.

Her son looked quite flabbergasted at her words.'' Why would you want me to send word to you about the bracelet if its found, Kaasan (mother)?'' he asked; his voice was audibly shocked.

'' I was the one whom saw what the bracelet looked like up close!'' Fuji spoke firmly.'' Therefore I'd actually like to be there when the thing is found.''

'' But, mother…'' Gin stuttered, but was quickly silenced by Fuji.

'' Promise me, Gin! Promise me that you will send word to me!'' she said sharply and earnestly.

Gin lay there on the tatami-mats, a stunned expression plastered on his face. He had known her mother to be caring and loving, but there was a new side to her now that he hadn't seen before as a puppy.

He knew she had been a hunting dog and guard dog to the Fujiwara family before becoming a mother to him and his two siblings.

But what had happened after his two siblings had been taken out of her care?''

She had explained on the mountain that she had been out hunting for rabbits with Daisuke, and therefore something big had happened during the six months after Gohei Takeda's death.

Had the doctor of the village, Hidetoshi, whom had also been his friend John's old owner, helped his mother and Daisuke to become a workable hunting pair?

Was this the reason her mother had become such a strong willed female character whom would stand up to her rights even if it were him she was standing up to?''

He shook his head in silent dismay; this new side of his mother baffled him, but was it such a bad

thing that she had changed?

'' No, no it isn't! And maybe this was her nature at the time she had been an active hunting dog; the side my father might have once witnessed and come to love.'' he wondered silently.'' Daisuke and Hidetoshi may have just brought out the side of her that was supressed when she became a mother.''

'' Alright, I promise that I shall send word to you as soon as anything is found.'' he spoke calmly, knowing there wasn't any point in arguing with her any further.

Fuji nodded, satisfied that her son had become so quickly accustomed to her new stronger character. She knew that he had been baffled by her change.

**Tip, tip, tip! Tap,tap,tap!**

The two Akitas turned to look out the window and saw, much to Gin's annoyance, that gloomy dark rainclouds had once again appeared in the sky and large wet raindrops were beginning to fall to the ground and batter at the windows of the house.

**End of Chapter 3**


	4. Chapter 4

**Friendships That Last Forever**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the work of Masashi Kishimoto or Yoshihiro Takahashi**

**Chapter 4: A New Future**

...

Three long weeks had passed since the sad and unexplained demise of the small towns local resident Fujiwara Daisuke.

The disappearance of the boy was still largely talked amongst the other villagers, but the topic was no longer approached in the presence of the boy's family or around those whom had been Daisuke's closest friends; like the boy's schoolmate, Shinji, and surprisingly the village doctor, Hidetoshi.

The villagers were much too respectful to not do such a thing and allowed the people most affected by the incident to live their lives without having to answer any unwanted questions about the blue light they had seen flashing up in the sky or what had made the teenager disappear into thin-air.

Then, of course, another topic popped out; this one being how the young boy and the village doctor had become aquinted with each other and how they had become friends.

Those whom knew told people who were interested to know, that the village doctor had become the Fujiwara-boy's mentor in the art of shooting the hunting-bow, and had further mentored him after the death of the bear, Akakabuto.

Thus the reason for the strange friendship between the young boy and the son of the former Commissioner of the village.

But this topic was also not spoken while in the presence of the young boy's family or friends

And as the days past slowly the moods in the Fujiwara household became less tense and grieved as the parents came to slowly accept that their son was no longer apart of their lives.

...

Then, on a warm day that following month, something happened in the Fujiwara residence that no one expected to happen. It would also be something that would reshape the lives of the small family forever….

A cool breeze blew into the household through an open window of the bedroom making the curtains flutter gently.

The sun cast a bright warm light into the room where a woman named Sen and her husband were waking up from their long nightly slumber.

The slim woman yawned softly and stretched her muscles under the soft blankets before turning to glance at her husband whom seemed, by the looks of it, dozed off again.

Smiling, Sen leaned over to plant a kiss on her husband's temple.

He murmured something inaudible and buried himself further into the blankets.

'' You have to wake up now Kousaku. Its almost six o'clock in the morning.'' the woman said softly, tickling her husband's bearded cheek with her fingers.

She laughed a little as he twitched at the feeling and murmured at her to stop tickling him.

Sen smiled as she stopped antagonising her husband and pushed herself up on her feet. But as she turned to head to the bathroom to freshen up for the day, a nauseus feeling in her stomach made her pause.

She quickly dashed to the bathroom as the nausea increased instead of ebbing away and locked the door behind her.

Leaning over the toilet-seat she heaved harshly a few times but only a small bit of bile came out, and thankfully the nausea passed after a few minutes.

**Knock, knock!**

'' Sen? Are you alright, Sen?''

Sen grimaced as she heard her husband's voice outside the bathroom door. Apparently her heaving had chased away Kousaku's tiredness.

'' Hai (yes), I'm alright!'' she called and unlocked the bathroom door before moving to the sink to wash her hands.

'' You sure, love?'' Kousaku asked, lowering his hands on her shoulders.

The woman looked up at the mirror and saw her husband's worry reflecting from the glass.

'' Yes, love.'' she answered reassuringly, trying not show what she truly felt. She had been, for the past two days, taking notice of the increase in her appetite and the late coming of her monthly cycle.

She hadn't wanted to mention it to her husband, but these strange changes in her reminded her of the time she discovered she was pregnant with their son, Daisuke.

And it made her scared and unsure of how she would be able to cope with things if indeed these changes in her body were leading to the inevoidable truth that she and Kousaku would have to raise a second child.

And do so soon after having lost their first- born to an unexplained phenonenum.

'' _I have to go see a doctor today_,'' Sen thought inwardly,'' _because I no longer can go through with the days events thinking about wether I really am going to have another child or not!''  
_

….

Later that day Sen Fujiwara was walking around the small town with their family's orange furred female Akita that their son had named Fuji, walking along beside her.

She had put on her best dress when she had gone to the doctor specialized in womans pregnancies earlier that morning after her husband had left to go to work in the rice fields; a lovely yellow dress that had a black line running along the hem.

And now she was waiting for the outcome of the tests done to her.

The waiting was excruciating but she knew these things things took time to analyze.

'' Only two more hours left.'' she whispered to the Akita as she sat down on a wooden bench to rest her legs. She wasn't sure why exactly she was telling this to Fuji; she knew dogs were very smart but she had always been doubtful to wether they understood everything human's said.'' Only two more hours.''

Fuji, whom was sitting on the ground next to her owner's legs, uttered a small whine and licked the woman's hand, and she smiled down at her.

Her owner had talked to her about the reasons she was going to visit a doctor today earlier that morning, and her fears of how she was going to cope raising a child so soon after loosing her eldest.

Fuji herself didn't know what to think if her owner was indeed going to have another child; it made her sad to know that it happened so soon after Daisuke's disappearance, but at the same time she felt elated about having tiny feet pattering on the tatami-mats of her owners house two years from now, and hear it's happy voices echoing from the rooms.

...

Two hours later, Sen Fujiwara was once more standing outside the hospital.

She was still nervous but more sure than ever that the changes in her were a sign that she was carrying a child in her womb. All she had to do now was to consult her doctor.

'' Alright, Fuji,'' she said softly as she knelt down to speak to the female Akita standing beside her legs,'' stay out here until I come back, okay?!''

Fuji whined softly and licked Daisuke's mother on the cheek.

The woman smiled and patted the dog on the head before standing up and heading towards the doors of the hospital.

...

**TWANG!**

**ZIIIPPPHHH!**

**THUNK!**

Daisuke Fujiwara uttered a satisfied sigh as he saw that his aim had been true.

The pheasant he had been stalking for keeled over and hit the grass with the arrow pierced through its chest.

Shouldering his hunting bow, Daisuke quickly walked over to his kill and swiftly pulled the arrow out of the dead birds body.

He then cleaned his arrow with care and put it back in his quiver before turning his attention to the dead pheasant.

''_ Finally I've managed to hunt down something without having to trust in the senses of Fuji._'' he thought as he took out a brown bag he had brought with him and stuffed the bird in it before standing up on his feet and moving to the stream that was only a few meters away.

'' _But only through many fails that taught me something new every day._'' he thought as he dipped his hands into the cold stream.

When he finished washing his hands he grabbed the brown bag, swung it across his left shoulder and began heading towards Tazuna's house with a grimace on his face.

He hated walking through the town nowadays because of the sheer fact that more and more people were seen out in the streets begging for food or money; men, woman and even kids his own age or even younger.

Most of them had even turned to stealing food or anything else that was sellable, but not all of them were truly bad at heart.

Some of them had families whom needed food to survive in the harsh conditions brought into the town by the infamous Gato.

Gato, the shipping magnate and founder of the the Gatō Company.

Or in other words a company that smuggled illegal goods like drugs. He had also taken control of the shipping routes leading in and out of Wave country ans thus preventing free import and export.

The whole country was isolated from the outside world and turned into an impoverished, hunger-stricken landmark.

''_Gato! Ever since I heard of him from Tazuna- san I've hated that wretched cold hearted bastard.''_ Daisuke thought with a grim expression on his face as his feet carried him through the streets of Wave Country towards the most populated part of town.

As he looked around him he was once again struck by the terrible conditions of the houses and the poor people sitting outside in the street begging for food and money or a job by holding big signs that said: '' I'm looking for a job; any job!

'_' This is horrible and inhuman to keep these people in fear of their lives so they wouldn't think to go against the man that's keeping them isolated in Wave country like a pack of mules in a pen.''_ Daisuke thought, clenching his hands into fists.'' _And if they try to oppose him, they'd be facing a public humiliation and execution; like the one done to Tsunami's husband and Inari's stepfather, Kaiza. Such a cruel fate to a brave man whom just wanted to save his family and fellow villagers from Gato's rein.''_

A passing man with his hands held in the pockets of his coat and a big straw hat on his head, suddenly moved to snatch the teenager's hunting bow and quiver from his shoulders.

'' HEY!'' Daisuke snapped as he dodged the hovering hands and struck the man in the stomach hard with his fist.'' This bow is NOT yours to take! ''

The man looked angry but seemed intimated by the teenagers unwavering glare. And supposedly the pain in his stomach had also been a reason he now turned and strode off down the street; perhaps looking for an easier target.

'' _Every day its like this!'' _Daisuke thought unhappily as he hurried his steps towards Tazuna's house.'' _Every damn day!''_

He wished he could do something to stop Gato from making the villagers lives any worse than they were now, but he was only one person without a big army of followers fighting for the same cause.

Just like within his own village at the time when the monstrous bear, Akakabuto was terrorising the area in the mountainside, the men from his village were too scared to do anything to solve the problem. Even his father had chosen cowardice instead of talking the others into working together.

'' _And yet something happened that brought down Akakabuto's rein_,'' Daisuke thought as he slowed down his walk as he came to a more secluded part of the town.'' _The wild dogs grouped together and defeated the monstrous bear and its followers, so perhaps something will eventually happen that shall change the fate of the people living in Wave Country. All they need is courage and will to stand up to the man that has made their lives as miserable as they are now. ''_

Meanwhile in the small village of Ohu, the day was almost at its end. The clocks had chimed seven O'clock pm. some time ago.

Sen Fujiwara glanced at the door leading inside the house even though it was rather foolish of her. There had been no sound to indicate that her husband had entered the house.

She was getting a little worried; normally it didn't take so long for Kousaku to return home.

Sighing, Sen got up from where she had been sitting on a chair next to the dining table and began to put the food she had cooked into containers so they wouldn't get spoiled and still be edible when her husband decided to return.

Fuji watched the woman's activities silently from where she lay on the tatami- mats.

Her owner had been surprisingly calm when she had stepped out of the hospital that afternoon, even though she had soon told her that her suspicions of a second pregnancy had been proven correct.

But the woman still needed to tell her husband the news that he was going to sire a second child.

**RIIINNNGGG! RIIINNG! RIIIINNNGGG!**

Fuji grimaced at the shrill sound coming from the telephone and lowered her head on the Tatami-mats right between her front paws. She had detested telephones since the time she had been a puppy.

'' Now who may that be ?'' Sen wondered out loud to Fuji, chuckling good naturaly at the dog's disgruntled expression as she quickly walked over to where the telephone was situated on a cupboard in the living-room.

She took hold of the speaker and held it against her ear. ''Moshi moshi!? Fujiwara Sen on the phone.'' she said into the speaker.

'' Hello, this is doctor Makino from the village Hospital.'' the voice in the phone spoke.'' I'm calling about your husband, Kousaku Fujiwara.''

As soon as these words were spoken, Sen almost dropped the speaker on the floor. Her heart constricted painfully as she faught down the rising panic. Her face was as white as a ghost as she shakily asked the doctor what had happened.

'' And… when do I get to see him?'' Sen asked the man shakily once she had heard the reason Kousaku was in the hospital.

'' We shall have one of the doctors call you as soon as he is taken to a room in the hospital.'' Doctor Makino answered in a comforting voice.'' Try not to worry, lady, your husband is in good hands.''

Sen swallowed the small sob rising in her throat and said:'' Thank you for the call, doctor Makino. And good evening.''

Tears dripped down her cheeks as she put the speaker back in it's holder. Her knees gave way and she sank onto the tatami-mats.

Leaning against the cupboard she uttered a sob as the worries involving her family just seemed to mount on top of each other one after another.

First her son had died, and now her husband was in the hospital going through an appendix surgery.

Fuji quietly padded over to her owner whom had buried her face in her raised knees.

The orange furred Akita then gently nuzzled the woman's cheek with her muzzle and when Sen looked up, she licked away the tears that had dripped down her cheeks.

'' It was a call from the hospital.'' Sen whispered faintly, but the female Akita still heard every word clearly. ''He needed to be taken to the hospital for surgery after he collapsed in the fields. I won't be able to go see him for some hours yet.''

Fuji could only stare at the human in shock; she had definitely not expected another problem for this small family to pile on top the other.

She gave a soft whine and allowed the woman to circle her arms lightly around her neck and bury her face in her fur.

Fuji turned her head and nuzzled her owner's cheek reassuringly when she felt Sen's tears wetting her fur.

...

Later that night, two hours after the first call from the hospital, the phone finally rang out in the living-room a second time that day.

Sen immediately pushed aside her bedcovers and grabbed hold of the speaker.

She had been trying to sleep in the bedrooms but she found that she was more comfortable sleeping in the living-room near the phone with Fuji lying down next to her.

'' Moshi moshi?! Sen Fujiwara on the phone.'' she exclaimed breathlessly, holding on to the speaker so tightly that her fingers turned white.

'' Sen, it is me. Hidetoshi.'' the very familiar voice of the young doctor spoke up from the other side of the speaker.'' Your husband is out of surgery and is now recovering in a hospital room.''

'' Is he alright, Hidetoshi?'' Sen breathed out immediately.

'' He is still tired from the anesthesia and there is always a little pain near the incition site following the surgery.'' Hidetoshi spoke into the phone.'' Otherwise he is doing well.''

'' Oh, thank goodness.'' Sen exclaimed tearfully. She could feel the weight on her heart immediately lift from the most welcome news.'' Has he already asked for me?''

'' Yes he has, Sen,'' Hidetoshi answered from the other side of the phone.'' He also asked me wether I knew anything about the reason why you had come to the hospital this morning. ''

'' How did he found out about it?'' Sen asked in a somewhat startled voice.

'' Apparently one of the other workers had heard about it from his own wife whom had seen you walking along the streets of the town...'' Hidetoshi answered. He didn't mention a word about her startled tone of voice, though he had heard it clearly,

''… But I told Kousaku that it wasn't any of my business to ask the other doctors what they had been discussing with their patients when it doesn't involve me at all.'' he continued reassuringly to the woman whom had once been his grade-school friend.

'' Good, because I want him to hear the reason from me only and no one else.'' Sen spoke with a relieved sigh.'' But, is it possible for me to come see him tonight, or… is it too late in the evening?''

'' Usually we don't allow visitors to come this late, but there apparently are some important things you have to discuss with your husband,'' Hidetoshi answered thoughtfully,'' so I'll talk my boss into giving you an hour to talk to Kousaku. And I'll drive my car to your place to pick you up. That is, if its alright with you, Sen?''

'' I'd appreciate that very much, Hide.'' Sen answered was a small smile on her face as she used the nickname she had given to the man when they had been in grade-school.

'' Then, if this is now settled, I'll hang up the phone.'' Hidetoshi answered.'' I'll see you soon.''

'' See you.'' Sen said softly and hanged up the phone.

She then walked to the bedroom to change out of her long black and yellow colored nightdress and into clothes that were more presentable for a hospital visit.

...

Kousaku uttered a small groan as he blinked his eyes open. He smiled as he saw his wife sitting on a chair next to his hospital-bed; tt had been her touch that had woken him up from his light sleep.

'' How are you feeling, dear?'' Sen asked in a soft voice.

''A lot better than I did, Sen.'' Kousaku answered in a somewhat hoarse voice; he felt comforted by his wife whom ran her slender fingers through his hair.'' I had this pain in my stomach since this morning and while I was out in the fields, it worsened. I tried to ignore it at first and go on with my work, but then the pain became too much and I lost conciousness.''

'' Who took you to the hospital?'' his wife asked softly as she carresed him on the cheek.

'' Shinji's father, Akio, brought me here.'' Kousaku answered in a wearied voice, mentioning the boy whom had been their son's friend since they'd been toddlers. '' I don't think Akio was very happy about me throwing up in his car a few times as we rode to the hospital. But really, I couldn't help it as the nausea kicked in.''

He then uttered a small laugh.'' As such, I don't recall ever feeling so horrible as I did on that bumpy road; not even as a young boy.''

'' Well, we can do something for Shinji's family as payment for their help.'' Sen commented with a small smile, before continuing in a more subdued tone of voice.'' Kousaku… there is something I need to tell you about today.''

'' You mean to tell me the reason you went to see a doctor today after I left for work.'' Kousaku stated, pushing himself in a more upright position .'' I heard you retching in our bathroom this morning, but you told me that you were alright. Did you speak those words just to keep me from worrying, de…Agh!''

'' Anata(dear), please don't excite yourself now when you've had the surgery not that long ago!'' his wife exclaimed in a worried tone of voice and gently pushed him back down onto the pillows.

He leaned back without grumbling, thanks to the sharp pain radiating from the incision site. Taking in deep breaths of air, he tried to be as still as possible so that the sharp pain would ebb away.

'' Honestly, Kousaku,'' Sen exclaimed in an admonishing tone of voice,'' see now what happens when you get too excited this soon after surgery…''

She then paused for a moment.

Her expression softened as she leaned forward to whisper in his ear.'' The doctor I visited is specialized in womens pregnancies and he explained to me that the changes my body has been going through for the past two weeks were a sign that I'm carrying a new life in me.''

'' S-Sen…'' Kousaku choked out, quickly catching on to what she was saying''…a-are you really pregnant?''

'' Yes.. yes I am. There is no doubt about it, Kousaku.'' she whispered in his ear. She then planted a kiss on his lips. Tears of joy were slowly slipping down her cheeks.'' I didn't want anyone else to tell you the reason why I came to the hospital this morning because I wanted you to hear it from my own mouth.''

'' Were going to have a second child.'' Kousaku whispered in a choked voice as he reached out to grasp his wife's slender hand in his own calloused one. His other hand moved to touch Sen's still very flat belly.

He hadn't felt this happy since the day he had married his wife; or the time when she told him that she was pregnant with their son all those years ago.

Or on that day when he first looked upon the tiny figure of their firstborn.

But even as the joy bubbled out of him, so did the guilt of not being more understanding towards what his firstborn had wanted with his life. For the past year he had been pressing the boy into giving up hunting and to focus on becoming a good farmer.

He had, at times, been really quite unbearable to the young boy and had caused his wife to shed many tears over the fights that had occured almost every day in their house.

'' Gomenasai( I'm sorry) Daisuke,'' he spoke softly as he carresed his wife's flat belly. He couldn't help the few small tears dripping down his cheeks, '' If you are watching from somewhere up there where I can't see you, please hear me out. I promise I won't make the mistake of not supporting your little brother or sister in what he or she wants to do in the future.''

''I'm sure our son heard you, dear.'' Sen whispered in his ear. '' I love so much Kousaku.''

'' And I love you, Sen.'' Kousaku whispered.'' Thank you.''

She smiled.'' Things will become better, Kousaku.'' she said softly.

'' Things HAVE to become better, Sen!'' Kousaku exclaimed as he stilled his hand on her belly.'' We don't need any more unfortunate events happening to us.''

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Daisuke uttered a sigh as he watched the rain splatter the ground outside and batter at the glass window in the bedroom. He sat on the floor with his knees raised up to his chest and his chin resting on top of them.

**Click!**

Daisuke raised his head as he heard the door opening and turned to face Tazuna whom had entered the bedroom.

'' You alright there, kid?'' the bridge builder asked as he walked across the room and sat on the chair situated near the window.

'' I'm just thinking about my parents.'' Daisuke muttered unhappily.'' Its been almost a month since that bracelet transported me away from Ohu and the only things the searchers must have found were the rabbit carcasses I had left behind. In their minds, I'm probably dead; and this bothers me because things weren't going well between my father and I.''

'' And what sort of incident caused the rift between you and your father?'' Tazuna asked the young man.

'' I'm a farmers son. A farmer's boy whom also works as a hotel-keeper during the Winter Season when people come to Ohu for the holidays.'' Daisuke answered.'' And since it took so much time and dedication from me to learn the difficult skills of tracking down a fresh animal footprint, I found myself spending more time with my mentor than my own father. My mentor's name is Hidetoshi, and he works as a doctor in the village hospital.''

Tazuna nodded thoughtfully.'' When you said that you started to spend more time with your mentor instead of your father,'' he spoke,'' did it eventually lead to the point where your father became frustratéd by your growing dedication to become a hunter?''

Daisuke uttered a sigh.'' Indeed, Tazuna-san! We had many, many very bad arguements which brought much grief to my poor mother; and it hurt me a lot as well to see my mother so sad…''

Daisuke paused and wiped away the tears that had appeared in the corners of his eyes ''... and it did hurt that my father didn't understand that hunting is what I really want to do.''

'' And was there another reason why your father made such a fuss about your decision?'' Tazuna asked the teenaged boy. He didn't want to pry too much, but he found himself intriguid by the story of Daisuke's life.

Daisuke glowered down at the wooden floor.

'' Hmph, my father may have actually thought that I saw Hidetoshi-sensei as a more important person than my own father.'' he answered unhappily.'' which I honestly didn't but I was too proud to say it to my dad exclusively because I felt that he was acting childish by being jealous when he really had no reason to be.''

'' Because despite how well you got along with your mentor, you still loved your father because he was whom he was: Your father!'' Tazuna commented, putting a hand on Daisuke's shoulder.

'' I do love my father,'' Daisuke spoke in a saddened tone of voice.'' It... it's just that it frustrated and angered me a lot when we didn't see eye to eye in the matter of what I should do with my life.''

Tazuna nodded, squeezing the teenager's shoulder slightly to comfort him.

'' TOUSAN(FATHER)!DAISUKE! DINNER IS READY NOW! COME DOWNSTAIRS BEFORE THE FOOD GETS COOL!''

'' Ah, that's Tsunami calling us downstairs.'' Tazuna commented, gesturing towards the door with a small grin on his face.''Well, I don't know about you, but I think we should head down to the dining-room and taste that delicious looking pheasant that you brought down today.

'' Ah, so you're hungry now, eh, Tazuna-san?'' Daisuke said with a small smirk on his face as he quickly stood up on his feet. '' But I brought down the kill so that warrants first dibs on me.''

He clapped the old man on the shoulder as he hurried past him on the way to the door.

'' OY!'' Tazuna exclaimed as he hurried after the young man whom was already on the stairs leading towards the kitchen and dining-room.'' WHOEVER SAID THAT YOU WOULD GET THE PRIVILEDGE OF FIRST DIBS?''

Daisuke just burst out laughing as he thundered down the stairway and vaulted over the railing some two meters from the bottom of the stairs rather than doing it the easier way, and slipped through the open door leading to the dining-room.

**The End of Chapter 4: A New Future**


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